HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Let's hope 2012 - will be another great year for this blog and maybe an ever bigger success with fans. More to come in 2012... Still not reached Tex Avery yet.

81. Buddy of the Apes (1934)

Title card courtesy of Dave Mackey.

Warner cartoon no. 80.
Release date: May 19, 1934.
Series: Looney Tunes.
Supervision: Ben Hardaway.
Producer: Leon Schlesinger.
Cast: Jack Carr (Buddy) and Billy Bletcher (Chief).
Animation: Paul Smith and Sandy Walker.
Musical Score: Bernard Brown.

This is another cartoon on the Internet that has a really fuzzy screen in it that pops up at times, and the annoying eg timer - in which I had to borrow a title card. This is Ben Hardaway's first credit as a director - but nothing improves at all - he's also pretty bad but it he was slightly better in his return in 1938. This short is a parody of Tarzan of the Apes - a rather bad parody.

Our cartoon begins with Buddy who steps out of his hut at the top of the trees, and he's wearing a leopard pelt, but still has his regular slacks on. He is somehow all muscly, with a huge chest. Urgh, that looks hideous on Buddy since he's a scrawny little rake. He thumps his chest and does probably the worst Tarzan yell I ever heard! Goodness he - it's so annoying even having to listen to it! It's like as though I'm hearing a teenager's voice going through puberty trying to sing. Buddy then starts to swing from different trees from limbs (of course, like Tarzan). Well at least we get to hear some lovely smoothing Bernard Brown music played from Buddy as it sounds similar to a Disney production musical score - not trying to say that Disney is bad; we always use them for examples - right?

Buddy then lands to the ground of the earth in the jungle. There is his friend who is an elephant. Buddy decides to take a shower (Yeah probably not showered for months) and he uses his elephant's trunk to wash himself. Seconds later, he hides behind the elephant (boy that was too quick a shower). But he hides behind the elephant for privacy as he dries his leopard pelt quickly. Buddy then goes off into the pond and uses a cattail to brush his teeth - Yep, Buddy is a jungle-man - he lives an animal, but somehow it's just a different setting and adaptation.

We then see these extensive shots of these jungle animals such as a giraffe (Giraffes don't live in jungles!) but anyway the giraffe is drinking water from the pond but guzzles it with his mouth - and is that the gag? Then the giraffe spits it into the pond. The alligator then yawns loudly and takes his false teeth out (with a very sloppy mouth) but he finds a hedgehog next to him in which he scrubs his own teeth by using the hedgehog as a brush and -- I guess it is funny. More scrubbing goes from a hippo in which there is a monkey that cleans it's tooth with a towel, in which they go into an annoying rhythm.

We then see a mother gorilla who is cradling a baby gorilla (Aww, similar to the "Tarzan" story except no Tarzan as a baby). The gorilla then feeds it some coconuts like a bottle, but the baby gorilla drinks the whole lot. Then the mother places the pacifier to suck the coconut milk, and sucks it like a normal baby would do. The baby then starts to cradle itself as the mother leaves to go inside (Tut-tut) Careless mothers. The baby falls off from the top of the house and lands into the river with his cradle.

As soon as the mother gorilla has finished updating she returns and starts screaming like a gorilla would do. The baby monkey is still in the pond and starts wailing. Meanwhile Buddy is standing by a table and chops a coconut with his knife and slurps it. The mother gorilla enters the scene screaming and panicking like a monkey would. She asks Buddy of the Apes to go and fetch him immediately. The poor child is almost about to slide down the waterfall in which Buddy has an idea to use the limbs as a piece of rope to attach the knife. He tosses the knife and aims at at the cradle in which the gorilla is saved. Mmm, it always seems that the directors at that time had to come up with creative ideas of how to be safe from danger. All the animals cheer on the saved monkey, but instead the nagging gorilla tells him off. Mothers. All the animals gather around in a circle with Buddy in the middle and they go around in a happy circle.

Meanwhile one of the African tribes spies with his telescope up in a tree in which he finds Buddy of the Apes in the middle, either because he must be most wanted or he's forbidden from their tribal kingdom. The tribe then rushes to the king of the lands about Buddy being found, with the Chief saying "Well, shut my mouth" - Yep, that's Billy Bletcher's voice alright. The Chief then grabs his guard's nose piercing of a triangle instrument and rings it as though it's an emergency. All the other tribes start on the hunt. We see a gag with these tribes that have long mouths and use it to play ping-pong and by god this is SO politically incorrect. The Chief gathers around all the other tribes and speaks in some gibberish language about the capture to Buddy, with the last sentence in English "Go Get 'Em". So the chase begins. Well at least Billy Bletcher has a strong voice to keep the cartoon going with it's lame gags so far.

Meanwhile Buddy is playing with another monkey and they seem to be playing "Eeny Meeny Miney Mo", but then a spear enters the scene, and hits that type of dartboard on the tree, in which Buddy and the monkey go into a frightened take. They see the spears coming at them with the whole village charging at them. They do their best to avoid the spears as best as possible, but then they swing onto a spear and land up into the tree into Buddy's hut. He bangs his chest and does the MOST irritating Tarzan sound ever - still. God, and and every time I hear it - it makes me want to eat my own shoe.

One of the elephants then sucks up some flowers in his trunk and shoots them at the tribes with the sound effects of bullets. Buddy then is about to do one of the Tarzan yells - Oh that's it - let me get that shoe. No wait, Buddy gets a spear through his teeth (not through his mouth) but he bites the spear. He throws it back at the tribes in which the spear starts to go all curvy and loopy to chase the other tribes away.

One of the kangaroos shows up with the tribe's nose pierce stuck onto the spear that's also attached to a tree. The boxing kangaroo turns up and then starts to box the tribes pretty brutally. One of the smaller tribes tries to stop that kangaroo by kicking it's patch in which a baby joey pops out and whacks the tribe unconsciously.

We then see some monkeys storing coconuts inside the hippo in which there is a monkey standing onto a swing on top of a tree. The monkey lets out in which he hits the hippo's bottom and the hippo starts firing coconuts at the incoming tribes.They fire one coconut at the incoming tribes in which they all bump into each other and fall off the cliff and into the river. A pelican flies into the scene in which the beak opens with some monkeys inside and they throw it at the Chief and his guards. The Chief then runs off in scardness, but there are some monkeys that then throw arrows at the Chief's behind in which he yelps in pain.

Buddy swings down to the ground and manages to capture the Chief and there is nothing but dust as we see him attacking the Chief. The Chief is then knocked out, in which he still does those irritating Tarzan sounds (Urrgh. I've ran out of shoes). All the animals join in to celebrate their victory with Buddy - and that's all folks.

Ben Hardaway - this is the guy who contributed to Woody Woodpecker, and his name was the influence to Bugs Bunny, and he developed the character's prototype. His first cartoon he directed for Warner Bros. just almost drove me bat-shit crazy. This cartoon was dreadful - there is just such awful animation here, and Buddy looks horribly drawn and animated with all those muscles showing and he's such the wrong character to even act in a Tarzan-parody picture. Yes, this cartoon drove me to the point where I had to eat my show inside a sandwich - and you of course think this is crazy, but these cartoons just get worse and worse and the more I do wild things on the blog. Anyhow, I'm going to have some rest and let's hope the next cartoon will be the great way to end 2011 - shall we find out?

80. Goin' to Heaven on a Mule (1934)

Warner cartoon no. 79.
Release date: May 19, 1934.
Series: Merrie Melodies.
Supervision: Friz Freleng.
Producer: Leon Schlesinger.
Cast unknown.
Animation: Rollin Hamilton and Bob McKimson.
Musical Score: Norman Spencer.

 Our cartoon begins inside a coal field where there is a bunch of black people that work there. Well, this is history since they used to work all day on cotton fields making cotton. We see a couple of black people that are picking some cotton and placing them into sacks, such as a buffed-up fellow who picks cotton out of a plant, and places then inside a sack with a small guy carrying a load full of it. We even get to see some gags such as a slave who has a lawn mower and shaves off the cotton that lands into the sack immediately that he is carrying. We see a shot of one of the slaves putting the cotton inside the machine, in which we PAN through the machine as a lot of the cotton immediately turn into clothes with the sign "100% all Wool Suits", well I guess I can't complain about that gag - and it works to me.

I should point out that Goin' to Heaven on a Mule was an old song written for it's time that was from the film Wonder Bar that Al Jolson performed as he was known for his time to perform "blackface" sketches that are of course - politically incorrect these days, but of course entertainment of it's time.

 Meanwhile there is another slave who is sleeping in the barn all day and not doing any work (well, it sounds harsh when I say it because they were slaves). But anyway he is sleeping on top of some hay with flies flying around him. He breathes in as he snores (with the flies almost flying in) and then snores (breathes) out as the flies fly out from his breath. The flies have had enough of the breath and trying to fly past but then the flies. The flies then form themselves into a plane in which they all start to sting the poor fellow. Jesus, even the flies at the time hate him, too? I hope this cartoon isn't meant to be made to stereotype black people and if it isn't - why isn't it included in the "Censored 11" it deserves to be in it more than SOME of the other cartoons that were included.

Anyhow, the black person sits back up and is about to take a drink of moonshine. But then an angel conscience pops up and warns him not to drink the moonshine. Huh? I'm not trying to be racist, but was this really the plan to include an white angel here, and not a black version (apologizes to those if offended). Then a devil conscience pops up demanding him to drink him - in which there causes a feud with the consciences. The fellow doesn't bother with both of them, so he just goes along and drinks it. He turns all weary with a fiery breath, and then it all dissolves into a dream sequence in heaven.

The fellow is now in heaven riding his mule singing the title song Goin' to Heaven on a Mule. The fellow on the mule is then entering a gate with the sign reading "Pair-O-Dice", and I assume this is another stereotype that I don't know much because in Coal Black Prince Chawin' had a pair-o'-dice in one of his teeth. There is a bunch of black angels that sing to the black guy on the mule riding. There is a God in there that also sings the song, as well as a bunch of other guys. 

As the song goes on there is the angel choir that still continue to sing the title song. Meanwhile there is a fellow who appears to have a couple of golf clubs and tries to get inside but "God" (whatever that is) then pushes him outside and removes the "Welcome" doormat away. Mmm, seems as though he doesn't care anymore. We then get to see an inside view of heaven that shows a town and somehow it only shows black angels in there, is this meant to be a type of ghetto town or something? There are also police cops up there that let angels cross. It's basically like downtown really, except add some clouds for the ground, put wings on them and the location is heaven. 

We then see an inside shot of a nightclub inside where there are these entertainers that are singing and dancing. As those entertainers on stage are singing, there is a gag that as they swap positions their hats are taller or smaller than the others, and it seems to get smaller at every position. We then see a black fellow that walks into thisclub and eats a watermelon. Okay, but I really am lost now. Is this meant to be heaven, still because some of the characters don't have angels wings? We see some type of drummer that drums on the little hoops above the angels that makes a lovely xylophone.

We then see another piece of entertainment of that see is these black angels that still play the piano. Ah, jeez, this whole cartoon just plays around with black people - and yet again this was ignored from the Censored 11. We see the black person that is eating the piece of watermelon and finishes it off. So a couple of those angels are still plunking to some tunes. The fellow that was eating the watermelon then looks outside to find an orchard will of gin but of course it's forbidden. He goes to the garden and starts to drink some of the gin. Either because he's not aware it's forbidden or thought "Screw laws and forbidden signs - drink!"

As the fellow who is drinking gin starts giggling (because he's drunk) the black God then stands behind him and taps his foot. The man who is drunk appears to be making some joke out of him with him replying "You'll pay for this!" Huh, doesn't it remind you a bit of the Garden of Eden where God tells Adam and Eve not to eat the forbidden fruit - it's very obvious. Too clear that he is drunk and wasted, the guards then grab him and they toss him into some type of pit (the writing on the door is too dark to see in this poor quality). 

The black fellow then falls underground as he was the same character eating that watermelon (man, this cartoon really confused me). He's back into the same locations from the beginning of the short, and he tosses his moonshine jug across the roof, and realized his love for it and then chases after it. He grabs it, sweats - and that's all folks.

When I watched this cartoon - the whole concept never seemed to clear to me. I know that it was about these slaves that worked in a cotton field, and one of them drank moonshine where they go to heaven full of other black people and it just has their culture for their time. Furthermore, there are some cartoons in Looney Tunes that I don't understand that are in the Censored 11 program, and some that I think should be. Let's compare it with Hittin' the Trail for Hallelujah Land and Goin' to Heaven on a Mule. In Hittin' the Trail the colors for Uncle Tom in that is so badly discolored and who's going to know that's a black stereotype and there's pretty much nothing harmful about it. In THIS cartoon that I'm reviewing; it clearly shows caricatures of black people and it's throughout the entire cartoon and shows them working in a cotton field so why isn't that in the Censored 11?

79. Buddy's Trolley Troubles (1934)

Warner cartoon no. 78.
Release date: May 5, 1934.
Series: Looney Tunes.
Supervision: Friz Freleng.
Producer: Leon Schlesinger.
Cast: Jack Carr (Buddy) (?).
Animation: Ben Clopton and Frank Tipper.
Musical Score: Norman Spencer.

 Our cartoon begins where Buddy is stepping out of his cabin and he appears to be carrying with him some type of bucket (?) whatever the item is. He is walking gayly through the town, and he is a motorman. As he is walking through to his garage - it seems as though he placed the bucket in his garage as though he's putting his tools away, but that's not all. He puts down his fence and places them flat to the ground, where he rides his trolley car. So it gets so that Buddy has to be "very creative" to put down picket fences as trolley cars. As he's riding through in his trolley - he is singing a song, and as he rings the bell - it causes the cat's tail to ring and to move up and down - okay this is too similar gag to the Oswald cartoon Trolley Troubles. We then see these shots of the advertisements coming to life - Gee, does this sound similar? (Smile, Darn Ya, Smile).

Buddy then parks his trolley in the tracks as there is a fat lady waiting to get inside. He greets the fat lady, "Good morning, Miss Belle", and she replies, "Good morning, Buddy". Wait a minute - they know each others names - oh yes, probably a regular passenger. Well if she is a regular passenger then she's put on a lot of weight as she is practically too fat to get onto the trolley. Oh dear - looks like my memory can remember a particular animated scene such as that happening.

What could that be from - why it's Smile, Darn Ya, Smile of course. Okay but no-one should even make trolley cartoons anymore. They could only be worse, and besides Trolley Troubles is original - no-one could top that trolley short. It's almost the same sequence except there's no fox or hippo performing it, and now snobby main characters while Buddy is a gentlemen. Buddy places a stool and swings it so that the fat lady can be placed onto the train with no insults whatsoever.

Buddy shouts, "All aboard" but there is another man who arrived at the station rather late and tries to stop the coach himself by shouting "Hey", he runs into the middle of the tracks. He runs onto the track and he pulls the bell, but keeps on getting hit by the tracks. The song Turkey in the Straw which is traditional is played in the background. As the passenger is inside the trolley; he sees a jackpot in the middle of the coach, and places 5 cents in there (cos he has to say 5 cents), and he ends up winning the jackpot by placing his hat full of money.

Buddy's trolley parks outside Cookie's apartment, and Cookie looks outdoors and shouts that she'll be ready. Yep, this is definitely Bernice Hansen voicing Cookie - her voice sounds like a child considering that Bernice Hansen was in fact a child actress of her time. The trolley then extends so that Buddy can meet her upstairs and Cookie can hop aboard. But Buddy wastes his time just staring at Cookie admiring her and tickling her chin. Outside that apartment is an advertisement board that reads "Katz Beer" obviously a reference to Ray Katz, Leon Schlesinger's brother-in-law and that worked at the studio.

While Buddy is wasting his time staring at Cookie; he holds up a traffic going on. Oh great - now it all comes from distraction, thanks Buddy. Buddy looks outside to find that there are loads of cars that are parking outside trying to get a move on, all to Buddy's surprise. He lowers the trolley but is interrupted by a police officer.

Police officer: Hey you! What's the big idea, who do you think you are? What do you think this is a picnic ground! Then why don't you say something?!
Buddy: (hesitates) Well...you see, er.
Police officer: Shut up!
Cookie: (Looks out) You can't talk to him like that!
Police officer: Oh I can't, eh? (Whacks Buddy) Come on, move on, move on!

You serious? Cops can really punch some guy in the face when actually if a person who doesn't work protecting the law punches someone - they'd get arrested. *Tut-tut* Officers, big tubby hypocrites. Oh wait, as Buddy gets moving, there is a hand sticking out that whacks the officer - ah-ha that'll show him. The whole concept was similar to Mickey Mouse's Traffic Troubles except no Minnie, or violence. Dialogue's similar. Friz Freleng did use Harman-Ising's steps when they copied Disney productions.

Buddy and Cookie both giggle at what they did to the police officer, so Buddy continues to get on with his duty by driving the trolley. Gee, if this carton was made in the late 1940's wouldn't it be so better if they got to play The Trolley Song from Meet Me in St. Louis? Well, it was in production too early. Looks like this is the 2nd trolley trouble for Buddy (the first dealing with the police officer), but this time he is being chased by a steam locomotive. They try to outrun the train that comes past, and luckily they do when they ride at the top of the bridge through different rails.

Meanwhile there is a prisoner who is working near the rails with is trying to get the chains off the iron ball by bashing the chains with a rock - it seems that he must've escaped from prison. As the prisoner sees the train coming past, he throws his iron ball over the railings in which the trolley runs past and splits open the chains. If only they were aware. This comes to the 3rd trolley trouble for Buddy.

The prisoner then manages to drive off in that trolley with Cookie screaming for help. Do I really need to say this?? (Boyfriend chases girlfriend sequence) - next time I'm gonna go crazy. Anyway Buddy tries to save his girlfriend by peddling fast with his emergency vehicle. The trolley is then going in both different railways which widens the trolley - very bad gag and doesn't even work (plus reused from Trolley Troubles) but alright. Buddy is peddling fast with the emergency vehicle until he loses control with it.

Buddy manages to successfully land on the trolley but is holding onto one of the wires on the roof, in which he swings around but is hitting the prisoner on the face with his feet. Both Buddy and Cookie then land on the emergency vehicle and they both push as fast as they can so that they can get away from the criminal.

As the criminal is still controlling the trolley, but then he comes across another vehicle that is in the middle of the tracks, but it turns out that there is actually dynamite on there. He tries to control that trolley but doesn't know how to stop it. But it's too late - he could've been wise enough to jump out of the trolley, but is too scared to do - so the dynamite explodes on the trolley. The prisoner lands on the ground with the black stripes on his uniform falling back into his suit. Buddy steps out and he pulls the gate closed so that he is trapped and prisoned just like in the olden days. We see some piglets that jumps around excitedly at the prisoner - and that's all folks.


Trolley Troubles.
Smile, Darn Ya, Smile.
Toonerville Trolley

Will those trolley shorts go into the list of worth-watching animated shorts and go down in history? I'd say so. Maybe not so much on "Toonerville".

Buddy's Trolley Troubles.

Will that short join the list? Not a hope in hell.

Why? Well, the cartoon itself steals some gags from the original cartoons (although mind you Smile, Darn Ya, Smile does a little bit but it does at least have original parts in that short, while Buddy's Trolley Troubles? Nope. Hardly anything). In fact this cartoon's title even feels as though it's stealing from Trolley Troubles except that they just had to place Buddy's name into it to avoid copyright. It appears to be the prisoner from a couple of Earl Duvall cartoons was also used here in a Freleng cartoon. Well he looks alike but we don't have his voice to prove it, but only the design remains similar.

78. Those Were Wonderful Days (1934)

Hiya readers, I've kept this blog quiet for a few days as I was going to be celebrating Christmas, but since it's over for another year - I'll resume posting these reviews.

Warner cartoon no. 77.
Release date: April 28, 1934.
Series: Merrie Melodies.
Supervision: Bernard Brown.
Producer: Leon Schlesinger.
Cast unknown.
Animation: Paul Smith and Don Williams.
Musical Score: Norman Spencer.

The animation shows Paul Smith and Don Williams...Oh my god, no Jack King! Yes, after reviews that credits with Jack King and another animator, finally there is someone that isn't him!! Yes, thank you Leon Schlesinger for promoting him.

Our cartoon begins with these man in the bar and they're dressed in an old fashion why, as we see some nostalgia song being sung. This takes place at the end of the nineteenth century, before the 20th century came. They seem the title song Those Were Wonderful Days and they all spit on spittoons for the rhythm. It appears that this song was written for the animator's parents sentiments, because this cartoon was made during the Great Depression, and this cartoon would've been made for this purpose. We see a "Lillian Bussle" poster that sings with the title "Gazelle".

We then see some shots of a bartender who makes some rhythm with his cash register, and I wonder if Chuck Jones would've done that animation since his characters back then were rubbery and balloonie. More inanimate objects from a piano and mugs sing, and we see a portrait of "Kilrain and Sullivan" and they are Jake Kilrain and John Sullivan that are dancing. Both are professional boxers of their time (but earlier than 1898) and their fight took place in 1889, but before the days of boxing gloves.

Meanwhile he see this guy who's wearing a dandy costume enters the scene, and there is a table with the sign that reads "Free Lunch", and the villain then steals the whole table cloth of lunch layed on that table. Why not? It says it's free on the sign, and it's not as though that there is a complex gag to that - if it is, then (coughing) bad joke. What the guy does is that there is a fat lady outside who has a huge bonnet hat, where he eats his food there by walking. Why does he need to do that, why couldn't he just grab a chair inside there and eat it. Use your thoughts, director! We see another gag where it takes place in a barber shop and the barer sands his blade, and then cuts off the tiny piece of hair that's on the customer. I was told that Bob Clampett's trademark in animating he gave his characters bald heads, and I wonder if he animated that?

The next part we see is a group of policeman that are strolling around the street, and they are reading a poster. There is a weird and strange dance where they use their beating stick to hit their cop hats for some xylophone pattern -- alright?? The poster reads Gala Picnic and Celebration at the Fair Grounds - July 4th 1898. Ironically this takes place on Independence Day, but is this is what the celebration is all about? Please, animated short - you're making this confusing to me.

The next scene shows the event - July 4, 1898. Gee, was that really such an event that day? I'll have to check Wikipedia (browsing). Nope! There are a few men who are lining up for some "Free Beer" - okay, what's with all this "Free" stuff? I know it's Independence Day but is this the theme of this cartoon? One of the guys takes the gutter out of the barrel, and sucks almost all the beer left and turns obese.

We then see a type of diving contest on who does the best-skilled diving, it says so in the sign "Fancy Diving Contest" - okay, it says fancy; not feat. We see a man who starts to dive but he hits his head on the diving board and falls into the water. We see a lanky lady who dives off, but then floats to the pond very slowly and carefully. The other diver in this contest jumps off the board but with his clothes flying off, but as he dives down his clothes are then placed back on because of the air. Well, to tell you the truth the contestant's diving isn't even fancy looking or impressive.

We get to see some couples that are with each other on playground, with the girl on the swing while the guy just sits down snoring. Another couple to be found is when the couple are on the seesaw and they seem to be pretty happy with each other. But then, just then we see the evil villain who has a big nose creep sneakily on to look at the girl. As he tiptoes the tree follows him so he can hide behind it, what so legs can walk now? He lights a dynamite and throws it at the seesaw in which obviously causes an explosion so that the "guy" is flown off, but the girl flies to the villain's arms and steals her.

I hate having to feel like a weirdo putting this up but:

Anyway, the villain (who has the girl) escapes in a hot-air balloon in which he cuts off the rope so that the guy wouldn't try to stop him. The bloke then tries to get his back at him by jumping onto a cannon in which he lights it. The cannon explodes that causes the man to jump up to the hot air balloon. The villain climbs up to the very top of the balloon - Okay, why climb up? You're obviously risking your life, why couldn't he find a cannonball and place it on the cannon for the balloon to burst, and speaking of which - why am I talking about cannons - we've past that part! Notice how that the tough guy has weird lips, is it lipstick? A kiss mark from the girl? Is he meant to be a both? Gay? So many questions pop onto my face. I noticed in his hairy chest when the cannon is loaded that his hairy chest looks like a flowered shape - okay, did he go through puberty in a condition of a flowered shaped hairy chest?

Anyway they both try to fight each other off the balloon, but the man falls off first and somehow bounces back up the balloon after grabbing onto the tip of the flag pole and then back up. The nasty villain then cuts off the ropes of the hot air balloon in which he's trying to kill her by making her fall. Goddammit, can't he not make his mind up? My goodness what a complete douche - he grabbed the girl, and what next he just goes along and kills her - goodness me villains are SO indecisive and thoughtless.

The giant helium-aired balloon (well used to be) is then falling from the sky slowly with the tough handsome guy and the villain chasing each other with the balloon rolling. Gee, doesn't that balloon look like a hand grenade to you. The girl is still falling, but lands in a hoop where she falls slowly and slightly safely. The chasing is still going on in the balloon but the tough guy punches him off the balloon and is left dangling. The tough man gets out a match and strike it. He lights it at the top off the balloon - and oh my god he's forming it into a type of hand grenade - I knew it, the type of words I wrote and then evidently became true. The tough man steals the villain's cape and flies down safely where he greets with his love one. The balloon explodes.

They reach to the bottom of the ground, in which the villain lands on the strength tester. The tough guy grabs out a hammer to whack him on the head. Much to the shock of the woman, she grabs out ANOTHER sledgehammer and whacks the hero on the head, and instead goes for the villain. Did you see that? I mean I'm blaming the girl in this picture, she'd rather go for that mustached-lunatic rather than the hero who saved her life. I know this is meant to be a joke to spoof on the shorts sequences where the hero ALWAYS wins, but it just doesn't EVEN work at all here. Not at all. So anyway, the woman gives the villain a kiss, where they laugh together - and that's all folks.

I feel this cartoon was made as a purpose to describe the good old days which was the 19th century. Well, it wasn't so "good old days" if you lived in England since the poverty children had to clean chimneys and many were poor. Since this cartoon was made in the Great Depression, it feels a safe bet that this was the overall purpose of this cartoon made. But I haven't seem any character animation and design that was so bland, so boring - and the animators didn't even put any effort into this. There is no point of even analyzing this cartoon, it's so dull, so bad, so sloppy, it's just pure tedious. I think I could be dying from boredom, but I need a rest from that to recover from a pain in the ass cartoon! The ending part completely didn't make sense to me, and at least it's a change for the villain to win the hero of this picture, that's the only positive part I'll say. Bernard Brown was just no artist himself, and that's where he got this awful dull designs from. Watching this cartoon doesn't give me any sentiment about "the good old days" it's just like a day to the hospital.

Merry Christmas, everybody!

From the following next few days, this blog will be quiet as we all will be spending our Christmas holidays with our families, and I will do the same too.

MERRY CHRISTMAS, DOC!

This blog is celebrating it's first 1st Christmas in the blogsphere, and we should wish this a good Christmas. ;-). From the summer when I launched it, I manged to get as far as reviewing cartoons in 1934 (still reviewing it). It's not a good year, so let's see if we can reach the Tex Avery era next year in 2012!

Once again,  Merry Christmas to you all - and enjoy what you will be getting. Try not and drink too much on Christmas. ;-)

Will return soon.

77. Buddy's Garage (1934)

Title card courtesy of Dave Mackey.

Warner cartoon no. 76.
Release date: April 14, 1934.
Series: Looney Tunes.
Supervision: Earl Duvall.
Producer: Leon Schlesinger.
Cast: Jack Carr (Buddy) and Bernice Hansen (Cookie).
Animation: Jack King and Sandy Walker.
Musical Score: Bernard Brown.

Before I begin my actual review, I have to say that this is an impressive title card I must say. There is an actual box package at the main title card which is just great and intriguing to an audience, comparing to the others when they're just plain black! Well, looks like this title card must go into my memorandum of "Reasons why Earl Duvall had potential as a Looney Tunes director".

Our carton begins with Buddy inside his garage who is sewing a tire by placing a patch on it. Buddy looks rubbery in that animation, and I guess that tells us it's an Earl Duval cartoon, while Honeymoon Hotel looked like Friz Freleng. He continues to sew the tire until it's finished, and then bites off the string attached to the sewing needle. We PAN to these kittens that are drinking milk out of a cat (in the fear of sounding dumb, but do kitten drink milk from their mothers)? One of the kittens then walk to a tire, and sucks it. There is then a tank of free water where there are ducks in there - makes sense to me (I don't think so). We see a fun gag that I enjoy is when there is a car that is scrubbing itself in the shower with a brush and soap - you even it's weird, then look at the sign closely that reads "Cars Washed". Buddy arrives with some oil and squirts it in parts of the car that is needed, it causes the inanimate car to giggle.

We see a shot of Towser sleeping (boy he sure looks older compared to Buddy and Towser). As Towser is sleeping, next to him is a flattened out tire that Buddy spots, so he finds a a pipe to place it on the wheel. Towser is snoring, but he still pumps up the tire. Mmm, if Towser could do that then he has strong lungs - still what could be a harmful gag since it's an Earl Duvall one.

Meanwhile there is a bee who's sitting down on one of the equipments, and he sharpens his blade stinger with a type of sharpener, as his plan is to pop the wheel with his stinger, and he so does it. Instead he uses his stinger like a drill - until the tire pops with air coming up and helium inside Towser. He then tries to chase the fly, but then swallows it. Don't swallow it you mongrel; it'll sting you! So Towser gets a funny feeling inside his stomach (with weary eyes) in which he spits out the bee.

Buddy then uses his hammer to hit on chisels as though he is playing the xylophone. Buddy then hears a "Yoo hoo" sound and notices that it's from Cookie. She brings a picnic basket that's for Buddy that excites Buddy. He tosses the fruit out of the basket in which it is all nicely prepared on the table. He then gets out a monkey wrench in which he uses it to crack walnuts, so at least it's telling us Buddy's tools even come in handy. We then get a random shot of Towser sniffing, but the inanimate gas pipe sprays gasoline on him, but gee - that's bad for him.

Cookie is also joining Buddy in his garage and he notices that Cookie's turkey is too small - so he thinks of an idea to pump it up so it will be good enough to eat. Buddy uses his knife to prods it to see if anything happens, but then it bursts leaving Cookie and Buddy to roar with laughter. Well that gag has been used many times in the past - and I guess it was funny back then but was it a popular gag back then from other studios?

Buddy hears a honking sound from outside and it means his lunch break is cut short, as he has to help a customer. Why it's the tough guy that Earl Duvall used - and sadly we don't even know his name, considering that he was never given one. The brute is inside his car waiting for Buddy and Buddy arrives in a committed attitude. The brute asks him "Get it loaded up", with Buddy's reply "Yessir". As Buddy gets his car recharging it's batteries by using gas, the brute finds a poster of a baby holding a candle and lights it with his cigar. What?? Don't be ridiculous, but what? I mean how is this true, what is this poster like 4 dimensional or something?

The brute steps out of his car with borden, while Buddy is getting on with his job. The brute then enters inside a shack where Cookie is powdering herself with make-up in front of the mirror. The brute then tries to get Cookie to kiss her in which she almost shrieks. Buddy is squirting oil, in which it squirts like a party whistle. Buddy hears Cookie's screams in which Buddy shouts "Hey you", but the brute feels threatened by Buddy and is about to get him. Cookie uses a drill to drill the brute's ass to stop him. The brute chases Cookie, then Buddy chases after him. The brute tilts a scaffold of tires onto him, in which he's completely stuck. (Sigh) this looks like another: say it kids: Villain chasing girlfriend sequence.

The brute manages to get away inside his own car (and it appears to be already full of gas already, since Buddy was still busily working on it). Luckily the smoke coming out of the exhaust pipe pulls the tires off Buddy, so he can continue the chase, and does so by using his cars to chase after the brute. She screams for help ad Buddy is doing his real best to try and stop the horrid man. An ice cream van and another van both jump from one side of their way, so those fast cars can go fast (couldn't they have stopped the tough guy from going anywhere?) but a hand comes out of the vans and shake hands.

The car where the tough guy and Cookie are ends up approaching a sign that reads road closed. So since the tough guy doesn't want to break the law. Argh jeez, why couldn't be just crash through that gate, it's like as though he doesn't want to get in trouble with the law, when actually abducting someone's girlfriend is breaking the law. Instead the car acts like a horse and jumps over the sign. Why couldn't he run it over, he is pretty bad-ass if you ask me. The brute's car then drives through a bridge and somehow the smoke goes through some of the planks of wood that it ends up taking all of it all (and how does that even work? You can't do that with wood, it's unnatural). Buddy's car who is catching up then splashes into the water since the bridge is practically almost damaged.

Buddy is still underwater, but he eventually catches up into the surface and does he by still driving of course, and with his tow; he catches a fish by luck. As Buddy is driving, he is distracted with the sounds of cats meowing, (are they the same kittens from the garage or kittens from out of nowhere?) The cats managed to eat up most of the fish leaving out the bones that is left. The car that the brute is and Cookie -- okay, I'm getting tired of keeping on repeating it - I'm just going to say the brute car, is that okay? So the brute car goes through a different direction, and Buddy's gets lost with the navigating, and it gets so the car has to sniff like a dog so that he can navigate his way to find the brute car.

Buddy's car then discovers his way on where the brute car is, so he drives along the path very fast and crashes into a laundry van. The car appears with several clothing on it such as a bra. The brute car drives fast, but skids when he reaches a house and drives through the other way. It seems that Buddy is acting all road rage by crashing into that house with a bed of children attached to his tow. I mean a lot of parts of the bed keep falling off and Buddy is causing more damage than the brute is - poor twins. As Buddy has now caught up with the brute car, Cookie continues to scream in which Buddy has an idea to use his tow hook on Cookie's skirt in and places her in his car.

Buddy then unloads his hook again, but grabs it on the villain's shirt and places him on the ground where he almost skids but he keeps on getting hit by each rock on the ground, and even on mud. Buddy then moves the brute on a wooden gate beside the car in which the tough guy gets attacked by each wooden end of the gate. Buddy and Cookie are reunited, but Buddy lets out of the fumes from the exhaust pipe to be placed on the brute - and that's all folks.

I liked the opening shorts of this cartoon in which it felt like what Earl Duval did to me, it had some fine gags in the beginning and it really felt as though we're sticking with the title of this short - Buddy's Garage. He seemed busy on the job, but everything sequences to a chase sequence right at the middle of the short to the very end, and I just feel that part was stupid with these lame gags albeit pointless plot. The tough guy seemed to be a favorite character by Earl Duvall, and obviously his creation - will be come back again? We'll find out. It feels to me as much like as though Duvall worked on most of the opening, but it feels like someone else was in charge of the rest of the cartoon - did Jack King finish off his productions when he left the studio?

I should tell you that this is Earl Duvall's last cartoon that he directed for Warner Bros. and probably the last he ever worked on. He got into an alcoholic argument with Leon Schlesinger that he should be the highest paid animation director in the animation industry, and the argument was quite grim. Hours later Duval came over to apologize, but it was discovered that his top animator Jack King was promoted to director by Leon Schlesinger, and Earl was barred from ever setting foot into the Leon Schlesinger Studios ever again.

76. Beauty and the Beast (1934)

Good evening kiddies, and come along -  today we will be reviewing Beauty and the Beast.

YAY!!

Belle is my favourite character. That Beast is so frightening, but he's so hot when we see him as a handsome prince in the end.

SAME HERE!

Gaston is just nasty, he thinks he's so cool, but he ain't.
- He's gorgeous - he has lovely muscles, and has got a six-pack. 
- That 'Beauty and the Beast' song is sooo romantic. I love all the songs.

Ahem!

I love that clock Cogsworth --- wait a minute, are you saying we're not watching the Disney movie?

Look at the title blog post for yourself, does the year look like it reads 1991 or 1934, and does this blog relate to Disney, kids?


Oh man, we're watching the crummy Merrie Melodies cartoon from 1934.

Yes.

Directed by Friz Freleng in his bland years?


Yes.

And it's in Cinecolor? Compared to the pretty colours in the Disney one?

Yes.

From the plot synopsis I've read on Internet Movie Database - it's not an adaptation to the fairy tale?

Nope.

This is what the main girl will look like in this cartoon?

 






Compared to the beautiful Belle? 








Yes.

This sucks. We're outta here!

 Goodbye kids, and scram!! Well, did you enjoy a bit of scenario I did? Well, I thought it would amuse ya - if you didn't like - then screw you (only joking).  If you couldn't follow it - the children dialogue is in italics, and of course - my dialogue is not in italics. So, anyway - here is the ACTUAL review.

 Warner cartoon no. 75.
Release date: April 14, 1934.
Series: Merrie Melodies.
Supervision: Friz Freleng.
Producer: Leon Schlesinger.
Cast unknown.
Animation: Jack King and Rollin Hamilton.
Musical Score: Norman Spencer.

Our story begins with a beautiful castle where a handsome prince turned into a beast lived? Nope, you've guessed wrong. The cartoon begins with a hallway, and there is a grandfather clock that ticks. The time is 10 o'clock at night. The grandfather clock does a type of beat, with the pendulum bashing the spittoon, then the clock goes back to normal. A door opens, with a little girl opening the door (who I guess is 'Beauty'), and she creeps very quietly through the hall.

She approaches a table at the lounge, and she steals some bananas inside a fruit bowl. She slides a banana off the banana skin, and opens her mouth wide open for the banana to land in her gob. She then eats a whole bunch of grapes, in which each grape land in her mouth one by one. After eating some grapes, she burps - covers her mouth so that no-one can hear her. Then, she steals a whole box of chocolates and gobbles them all up - greedy pig.

The girl is still finishing up on the chocolates, in which some type of elf on her wallpaper comes out - AARRGH, why?? Oh wait, it's one of them dreams - what you mean to tell me that once she's inside that room, she's dreaming??? OH wait a minute, it's the Sandman who says "It's time for the little girl to sleep." and places sand on her eyes. Eh? You didn't explain it right, I mean putting actual sand on her could make her eyes sting, and - how is it presented as a dream? I know the saying the Sandman, but I didn't think that she would SEE him.

So yeah, the girl then gets herself from "shuteye", she instantly falls asleep but she finds herself floating and ending up in a dream up in the skies. She then ends up falling down from the skies, with her patch forming into a type of parachute and floats, where we can see her bottom - so those guys really thought we would think of it as 'cute'? Her buttons fall off, where she falls down - and lands in some type of scenery or garden. I have to say that those layouts there are extremely weird - especially in 1934.

She then arrives at a different castle (already completely different and detailed background??) and there are these squires at the top who greet her who play the trumpet as an alarm to drop the bridge, in which the bridge drops. She enters the castle where she is greeted by all these Nursery Rhyme characters and toys, oh boy what a fantasy - for a child. There are then these heralds who sing a Welcome to Toyland song to her, singing that they'll play all they - and there is a frog that does a "Boop, boop, boop", sound Harman-Ising used - aw man, Friz Freleng retraced their footsteps. At least one of the heralds zips the frog's mouth from his annoyance. They also sing to her to be careful of a beast that resides in "Toyland" as well as the guys in the jack-in-the-box. The song finishes and everyone cheers. Well, that was a completely pointless song that was just boring and I'm sure that in the five minutes - I would've completely forgotten it.

Then, there is a parade of toy soldiers who come marching down - including a slight beat in their march. The little girl then approaches the soldier leader, and looks back at her with a love heart dinging on top of him. Okay, but that must mean he loves 5 year old girls. The girl says, "Ain't he cute?" which was a typical Harman-Ising quote back then, and yep - it seems that Freleng tried to continue what they did - but did so unsuccessfully because - he has an even blander look on that carton, for starters. The girl picks up the soldier and kisses him on the lips, in which he turns red. Okay, I don't know if that means he's a soldier who looks the same age as him?

Humpty Dumpty then laughs loudly off screen at what happens, then we see him sitting on the wall (as he does in the Nursery rhyme). Humpty Dumpty then "had a great fall", he cracks on the ground in which we see multiple of toy bird figures that quack, then go into a dance routine. They use their stilts with wheels do to a skating act with Sleeping Beauty being played in the background, since the score is very popular for skating scenes. Up on the wall are these elves that are putting crackers inside the fan in which it looks like there is snow in the scenery. The ducks then crash onto a pile of building blocks, with each one stuck on their head reading "Nertz" - Nertz?? What, so since when did this have something to do with the card game "Nertz"?

All of the toys clap, including the little girl and the toy soldier. The soldier then asks the girl to follow him, as they are about to enter inside a gate. They go through some different books that are available to read - they all appeal to the little girl and the soldier. She turns to the book that she finds - Beauty and the Beast - so, is that WHERE the title came from?

They then sing the title song which is Beauty and the Beast - and yes, it appears to be that's where the title came from. They sing through the text in where that even rhymes, then we get the Robinson Crusoe book singing for us, too. How does that book relate to Beauty and the Beast? They continue singing through that cheesy song, with Mother Goose book illustrations backing up the song for us. Suddenly, we view an illustration of the beast who has a scary look, but scary character. Oh please, I've seen beasts that look scarier. Is this beast meant to be designed to scare kids - well the big question is - was those cartoons made only for kids??? The beast somehow pops out of the illustration - so it's a magical book where illustrations can pop out then?

The beast then pops out starting to chase after Beauty and the toy soldier. The beast manages to grab the little girl in which she screams. Well, this is time for a "villain steals the girlfriend" sequence. Well, are they really going out - it was only one kiss... The toy soldier then tries to help out the little girl by switching onto a toy plane that flies to help out the little girl. The plane then reaches the beast's back in which it shaves parts of his back, and then spins around his body his most of his hair gone.

The little girl and the soldier are then trapped, and have nowhere else to go. The toy soldier still has another trick, in which there is a cannon near him. He strikes out a matchstick, places it on the cannon in which it starts yelping in pain. What? Don't be ridiculous with gags like that, you can't just put a gag like that with no purpose, it wasn't needed!

 

The monster (or beast) then grabs the girl, and the toy soldier - well they're doomed. OR ARE THEY?? The dream fades back to the little girl at the end of her bed screaming. She wakes up - everything was a dream. She then jumps back onto her bed rather afraid. She hides under her duvet with her patch falling down where we see her anus - and that's all folks.

Well, kiddies, was it as good and as close to the Disney movie?? Not the least part. Well, truth to be told I don't really like the Disney movie very much (rather boring to me) but this short was just worse - no question. The short just followed to a similar Harman-Ising story and Friz Freleng seemed to be too influenced by them at that time. Of course, the colour in this cartoon seem very terrible to you with so much red/pinkish colours in it. Well, that's called Cinecolor to you - it's not meant to be good. I really hate that recurring part with the girl's bum showing with her patch falling down - for gosh sakes, I don't find it cute, or amusing. Anyway, I just added that bit of scenario at the very top just for fun, and thought it would amuse you. Of course, the morale of this short was that she ate chocolate during the night which gave her nightmares - only the Beast. I know they say sometimes eating sweets late at night gives you nightmares, but fruit - really? I guess it would make even more sense if she ate cheese at night.